


Meditations on Freedom

by merry_amelie



Series: Academic Arcadia [81]
Category: Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
Genre: Alternate Reality, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-07-04
Updated: 2006-07-04
Packaged: 2018-02-07 17:37:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 421
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1907862
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/merry_amelie/pseuds/merry_amelie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>July 4th had become more than symbolic.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Meditations on Freedom

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback: Is treasured at merryamelie@aol.com (or leave a comment).
> 
> Disclaimer: Mr. Lucas owns everything Star Wars. I'm not making any money.
> 
> For  
> My beta team: Nerowill, Emila-Wan, and Carol  
> Mali Wane for posting  
> My former betas: Alex and Ula

The first summer of their marriage, ripe with the promise of freedom.

The sight of it. Quinn's eyes crinkling from Ian's pun.

The sound of it. Ian's groans into Quinn's mouth.

The feel of it. Quinn's cheek tickling Ian's dimple.

The smell of it. Ian's scent rubbed into Quinn's skin.

The taste of it. Quinn's kiss coaxing Ian's lips open.

It was enough to make their senses reel. The best intoxicant yet. Better than the Guinness they'd drink with their hot dogs in their very own backyard.

Freedom of expression was a fundamental part of the academic creed, one that they'd spent their careers espousing, but had been noticeably lacking in their personal lives. Their meeting had changed everything. Freedom was an abstract concept no longer.

July 4th in particular had become more than symbolic, growing into a touchstone of personal freedom for them since their first shared Independence Day in 2004. Quinn's inspiration to wear their Williamsburg rings at the Prentice barbecue had marked a sea change in their public perception. They had freed themselves step by step in the years since then.

They'd felt perfect freedom for the first time as green and blue Roman candles had burst in the skies over Padua. By the following year, they were out to the entire Prentice clan, with Rory as an unwitting catalyst.

Luke was next. Their marriage had given them true academic freedom after years boxed into their office. They'd felt a new ease in the classrooms and corridors of Luke since a sunny October Saturday had united their lives officially. Students, faculty, and staff had welcomed them as a couple, with a few sour exceptions.

All because their courage was a force to be reckoned with.

This Independence Day, their first as a married couple, they reaped the rewards that their courage had sown. Geraniums and marigolds blossomed in the back garden, while the men thrived inside their little home, a daydream just a year ago.

This year, they were hosting the family cookout for the first time, no longer guests at the party. And the fireworks outdoors would merely be a warm-up for those indoors after the last straggler had left.

Freedom had come to them late, and was treasured all the more for it. A gift they had given to one another when sharing the hearts they'd been protecting so fiercely. The rewards were never more apparent than when they opened the door to their smiling family and friends.

And they'd done it all for each other.


End file.
